THE HEADLINES ::
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi returns home after successfully concluding two-nation visit to US and France.
- External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar holds talks with Ukrainian counterpart on sidelines of Munich Security Conference in Germany; Discuss Ukraine conflict and bilateral cooperation.
- Lok Sabha Speaker forms 31-member Select Committee to examine new Income Tax Bill; BJP MP Baijayant Panda to head the panel.
- CBSE board examinations for Classes 10th and 12th to commence today.
- Third edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam to begin at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh today.
- In Squash, Indian girls and boys teams, enter semifinals of Asian Junior Team Championship in Hong Kong.
- In WPL Cricket, Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Gujarat Giants by six wickets in opening match at Vadodara.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has returned home after successfully concluding his two-nation visit to United States and France. Mr Modi arrived in New Delhi last night.
Prime Minister Modi visited the United States at the invitation of President Donald Trump. This was Prime Minister’s first visit to the US after the inauguration of President Trump for a second term. During a substantive and productive visit to the US, Prime Minister Modi held bilateral discussions with President Trump in Washington. The discussions covered the entire gamut of the relationship, ranging from strategic and security cooperation, defence, trade and economic engagement, technology, energy security, and people-to-people linkages, as well as regional and global issues of concern.
During the first leg of his two-nation tour, Mr. Modi visited France from 10th to 12th of this month. During the visit, Mr Modi co-chaired the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit in Paris, along with French President Emmanuel Macron. They also jointly inaugurated the newest Consulate General of India in Marseille.
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External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar met his Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany late last night. The two leaders discussed ongoing efforts towards resolution of the Ukraine conflict. They also spoke on further advancement of India-Ukraine bilateral cooperation.
Dr Jaishankar also met Defence Minister of Germany Boris Pistorius. Their talks revolved around bilateral cooperation and the Ukraine development.
The 61st Munich Security Conference (MSC) began at Munich in Germany yesterday, bringing together policymakers and experts to discuss pressing global security challenges.
The External Affairs Minister also participated in the Think Tank Ananta Aspen Session at MSC 2025. The theme of the session was Coming of Age: Evaluating Rising India’s Security Challenges.
In his first engagement at the Conference, Dr Jaishankar spoke during a panel discussion on the topic ‘Live to Vote Another Day: Fortifying Democratic Resilience.
The External Affairs Minister expressed optimism over the direction of India’s democracy.
He highlighted India as a democracy that delivers.
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Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has constituted a 31-member Select Committee to examine the new Income Tax Bill. The panel will be headed by BJP MP Baijayant Panda and it will submit its report by the first day of the next session.
The Income-Tax Bill 2025 which aims at consolidating and amending the law relating to income tax was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. While introducing the Bill, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had urged the Lok Sabha Speaker to refer the draft law to a Select Committee of the House. Speaking on the Bill, Ms Sitharaman said that the new legislation has fewer sections and chapters in comparison to the existing Income Tax Act, and it has been simplified for easy comprehension by the common people.
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The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is conducting board exams for Class 10 and 12 from today. Over 42 lakh students are likely to appear in these exams from 7,842 examination centres in India and abroad. The exams will be conducted in a single session, from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM. The Class 10 exams will conclude on 18th March, and the Class 12 exams will end on 4th April. Our correspondent has filed this report.
“Students must bring their CBSE Admit Card 2025 as it is mandatory for entry. All stationery items like pens, pencils, erasers, and geometry boxes should be kept in a transparent pouch as per CBSE guidelines. Students can carry a transparent water bottle to stay hydrated during the exam.
They have been advised to arrive 30 to 45 minutes before the exam starts to avoid any last-minute rush. Mobile phones, smartwatches, and electronic gadgets, are not allowed inside the examination hall. meanwhile, Delhi Metro has introduced a series of measures to ensure smooth and hassle-free travel for students appearing for the exams. Students carrying their CBSE Admit Cards will be given priority during security checks at metro stations. They will also be prioritized while purchasing tickets. Suparna Saikia, Akashvani News, Delhi.”
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India’s foreign exchange reserves increased by over 7.65 billion dollars, reaching over 638.26 billion dollars in the week ending 7th of February. This marks the third consecutive week of growth in the reserves. During the last week, foreign currency assets, a major component of the reserves, rose by over 6.42 billion dollars to 544.10 billion dollars. Additionally, gold reserves increased by over 1.3 billion dollars, totalling more than 72.20 billion dollars. Meanwhile, Special Drawing Rights decreased by 11 million dollars, reaching over 17.87 billion dollars, according to the central bank’s data.
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The third edition of the Kashi Tamil Sangamam, an initiative fostering cultural and intellectual ties between Tamil Nadu and Kashi, will commence at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh today. Union Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan; Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr. L. Murugan and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will inaugurate the prestigious cultural event. The initiative, organized by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with various ministries and the Government of Uttar Pradesh, aims to celebrate and strengthen the ancient civilizational bond between Tamil Nadu and Kashi. We have a report:
“The Kashi Tamil sangamam seeks to provide an opportunity for scholars, students, philosophers, traders, people from other walks of life artists from the two regions to come together, share their knowledge, culture and best practices and learn from each other’s experience. This year, the government has decided to bring around thousand delegates from Tamil Nadu under five different categories. The main theme of this year’s event is highlighting the significant contributions of Sage Agasthya to the world of Health, Philosophy, Science, Classical Tamil Literature, and cultural unity of the Nation. This year, for the first time, participants will get to witness the Mahakumbh in Prayagraj and visit the newly inaugurated Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. The event will offer a divine experience and bring Tamil Nadu and Kashi-the two timeless centres of our civilisation and culture, more closer. This 10-day-long event will conclude on 24th February 2025. Om Awasthi, Akashvani News Lucknow.”
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Now news from Mahakumbh;
Around 15 thousand sanitation workers will strive to create a world record today by participating in the largest synchronized sweeping drive at the ongoing Mahakumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj. This comes in the backdrop of two remarkable world records created at the Mahakumbh yesterday. First, by becoming the largest event globally, with over 50 crore direct participants. The second is setting up a new benchmark for the largest-ever synchronized river-cleaning campaign. We have a report:
“The Mahakumbh Mela Authority will attempt to achieve the world record today by involving 15,000 participants in a coordinated cleaning effort in the entire fair area simultaneously. The initiative aims to highlight the core values of Mahakumbh by promoting cleanliness and environmental conservation while strengthening the message of collective responsibility to preserve the sanctity of key sites. Previously, in 2019, the Mela administration set the record with 10,000 participants. This year, the initiative aims to surpass that achievement, setting a new global benchmark for large-scale cleanliness campaigns.
The records will be handed after the Guinness Book of World Records verifies the videography of the event.
The Mahakumbh also created history by becoming the first event in the world where more than 50 crore people are direct participants. Over 50 crore 11 lakh devotees have taken holy dip at the Triveni Sangam so far. It is being credited as the largest congregation in human history for any religious, cultural, or social event. With Abhishek Kapil, Adarsh for Akashvani News, Prayagraj. “
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Israel has announced the names of the three hostages set to be released from the captivity of Palestinian armed group Hamas in the Gaza Strip today. It will be the sixth exchange of hostages and Palestinian prisoners under the ceasefire deal that came into effect last month. The list was delivered to Israel through Qatari and Egyptian mediators. Prisoner Media Office of Hamas said that release of 369 Palestinian prisoners by Israel is expected in exchange of the three hostages. These prisoners include 36 serving life sentences and 333 hailing from Gaza.
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Now, turning to the world of sports, here’s the latest update: In Squash, the Indian girls and boys teams, both have advanced to the semifinals of the Asian Junior Team Championship in Hong Kong. We have a report:
“The Indian girls team finished second in Pool B to seal a spot in the last four. Now, the girls team will face Home favourite Hong Kong in the semifinals today. On the boys’ side, India defeated Hong Kong to enter the semifinals. They will now take on Malaysia today for a spot in the final.
Moving on to Women’s Premier League (WPL) Cricket, Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated Gujarat Giants by six wickets in the opening match at Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara last night. Chasing a target of 202 runs, Royal Challengers Bengaluru overhauled the score for the loss of four wickets and nine balls to spare. Richa Ghosh was adjudged the player of the match for her unbeaten innings of 64 runs. Today, Mumbai Indians will take on Delhi Capitals in Vadodara.
Moving ahead, the 38th National Games of India in Uttarakhand, concluded yesterday with a spectacular closing ceremony. Haryana emerged as the second runner-up, Maharashtra claimed the first runner-up position, while the overall champions were the Services Sports Control Board with 68 gold, 26 silver, and 27 bronze medals. CHIRAG JHA. AKASHVANI NEWS, DELHI”
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Light to moderate rainfall is expected in North-Eastern part of the country today. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said, dense fog conditions will continue to prevail during early morning hours in isolated pockets of Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim. Cold Wave conditions are expected in isolated pockets of Himachal Pradesh today. The IMD said, there will be a gradual rise in minimum temperature by 3 to 5 degree celcius in Central India during next 2 to 3 days.
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TODAY’S NEWSPAPERS,
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States dominates the front pages of all the papers this morning.
- “India, U.S. to double bilateral trade to 500 billion dollars by 2030” leads The Hindu.
- “India US eye trade deal by October as Trump vows reciprocal tariffs in talks with Modi” leads The Tribune.
- “New 10-year partnership framework to F-35s to Javelin missiles: Major boost to defence ties” reports The Indian Express.
- “Trump approves Rana extradition, more will follow” reports The Asian Age.
- “Government farmers hold talks, fix a new meeting in the sign of thaw,” writes Hindustan Times.
“Union Minister Hardeep Puri emphasises commitment to attract investors in the energy sector,” says The Statesman. - Finally, “Lieutenant Governor of Delhi urges sanitation staff to make Delhi garbage free” reports The Times of India.
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THE HEADLINES ONCE AGAIN
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi returns home after successfully concluding two-nation visit to US and France.
- External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar holds talks with Ukrainian counterpart on sidelines of Munich Security Conference in Germany; Discuss Ukraine conflict and bilateral cooperation.
Lok Sabha Speaker forms 31-member Select Committee to examine new Income Tax Bill; BJP MP Baijayant Panda to head the panel. - CBSE board examinations for Classes 10th and 12th to commence today.
- Third edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam to begin at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh today.
- In Squash, Indian girls and boys teams, enter semifinals of Asian Junior Team Championship in Hong Kong.
- In WPL Cricket, Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat Gujarat Giants by six wickets in opening match at Vadodara.
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